Chapter 5:
As Aren gets back up on his feet he follows her toward the palace, walking on the sand one step at a time.
The palace sits on the horizon like a tooth in the broken jaw of the world — dark, angular, impossibly tall.
Aren (thinking): I sense a bad smell from her. Something's off.
He reaches out and puts a hand on her shoulder.
Aren: "Who exactly are you? You're not human."
Eve (flat): "That's right. I'm a curse."
Aren: "A curse?"
Eve: "Yeah. I've been living for the last 10,000 years. I witnessed mankind's rebellion against the gods."
Aren: "You could be my enemy then."
Eve smiles — not warm, but sharp, like a blade catching light.
Eve: "If I was your enemy I would have already been trying to kill you."
Aren: "Then why side with me?"
A faint sound follows Eve as she speaks — like distant voices under water, a ripple of echoes only the wind should hear. Her skin seems to drink in the starlight and give none back.
Eve: "I've enhanced the essence flowing in my veins to the max, which means I can see the future. When I looked at you I saw something."
Aren: "What did you see?"
Eve: "Follow me. I'm your ally. The 40th curse — Curse of Drowned Voices."
Aren: "Alright then."
Eve (thinking):What I saw was a rebellion of mankind led by you. I will take this chance to achieve our goal.
They walk on. Sand clings to their boots; a thin wind pushes against the palace doors like an unseen hand. Above them, lightning that once belonged to gods stutters in the clouds — as if the world itself is listening for the future Eve has glimpsed.